Eels mostly inhabit shallow and muddy waters in the Amazon and Orinoco rivers in South America. One common misconception is that electric eels are true eels, but, other than the name, electric eels are more closely related to catfish and carp than true eels. Find out more!

They’re carnivorous, which means that they primarily eat meat. Their diet usually consists of worms, snails, frogs, shrimp, mussels, lizards and other small fish. They will generally hunt for food at night. The most common eels are conger and moray eels. Conger eels only live in oceans and seas. Moray eels live in shallow waters and can usually be found in crevices in rocks or coral reefs.

There are 100 different types of conger eels. They can grow up to 6 feet in length and weigh more than 100 pounds. Due to how large they can get, they live in deep waters. They’re black or gray in color. Eels like to burrow in the sand because it allows them to surprise and attack their prey. However, some eels actually prefer to chase their prey.

When eels are first born, they’re flat, transparent larvae. The larvae drifts to the surface of the sea to start feeding on dissolved nutrients. The eel larvae change into glass eels and then into elvers, they’ll finally be close to becoming adults.

While eels are a delicacy in many cultures, they must be thoroughly cooked because their blood is very toxic. Eels are covered in slimy mucus that allows them to slither around reefs without getting scratched. They have very poor eyesight and will often bite a divers fingers who give them food.